_09242026-230

IRON COUNTY AGING ADVISORY COMMITTEE Meeting September 24th, 2026 1:00 p.m. 1. Meeting called to order 1:00 p.m. by Loeffler. Roll Call -Members present: Susan Loeffler, Karen Lauer, Brad Buccanero, Jerry Mattson, Kal Patzer. Absent: Candy Pogliano and Joe Pinardi Public Guest: Kim Rowe ICHS Staff Present: Trista Olson County Manager- Not in attendance County Board Chair- Not in attendance 2. Acknowledge meeting posting- Olson acknowledged the meeting was properly called and posted. 3. Approval of Minutes from previous (June 9th, 2026) meeting: Motion by Lauer, Second by Buccanero. All in favor. 4. Nutrition Site Reports and Data a. Meals Served and Revenue- Olson provided year- to date number of meals and revenue for all meal sites. Noting that tracking potential trends is hard when meal sites are constantly changing, staff changes, meal site closures etc. Loeffler referenced last advisory meeting referring to meal participants’ contributions and lack of those contributing. Olson discussed the option to send a letter to inform public about importance of member contributions but discussed the increase of food, over all living etc. is hard on seniors. Loeffler suggested reaching out to local churches and asking for donations to support the program and help offset tax levy. b. Meals Site Updates- Olson went around table for site updates per members available. a. Saxon: Olson shared that the Saxon meal location has now reopened with new addition of cook Gail Korhornen. Olson asked public guest Kim Rowe to share her thoughts on how Gail is doing. Kim Rowe spoke on the overall happiness the Saxon and Gurney community feel to have the Saxon Community Center back open for meals. Kim said the meals were great and felt that Gail is doing a great job. They are seeing great numbers with average between 18-25 people returning to their designated Monday through Wednesday offerings. Iron Belt: Mattson spoke as member of Iron Belt meal location. Stating meals have been good but seating at Joany’s has t him feeling cramped. Olson will look into seating changes to allow for more room for members. Also noting the timing of food is limited with meals coming out little slower, since it’s in a restaurant and Joany had limited help. Mattson asked Olson if meals would be returning to Iron Belt Community Center. Olson noted current contract with Joany is month to month with the benefit of no overhead, set plate cost and no labor it is saving county month to keep contract with Joany. Participation has also increased in comparison to Iron Belt community center to Joany’s with increase of 86 meals from May to Sept from 2025 to 2026. Buccanero asked about possibility of having meals delivered from Joany’s to the center. Olson noted that was discussed when the contract first began but that would come with added cost, need to staff or establish volunteer for site manager duties at community center should that occur. Olson noted that should any changes that want to be addressed regarding Joany’s it would have to be determined by Hurley Senior Center and overall cost increase to return back to community. Mercer- Loeffler shared that things continue to go very well at Mercer. Loeffler, shared the Friends of Center have recently purchased a nice salad bar with additional monetary help from ADRC using grant funds from Incredible Bank. Loeffler noted that Mingle and Learn Lunch Series has returned on Wednesday to offer learning presentations and encourage folks to stay for lunch directly after. Hurley- Numbers have been consistent and Olson is working on new need for dishwasher has current one in place is over 40 years old. Springstead: Patzer reported that things have been pretty good at their townhall. He notes however that he will be stepping down from Aging Advisory board representative and is actively looking for a replacement. Patzer notes that there are times when meal components don’t look the same or variable in serving size. Olson will look into consistency with Mercer cook that provides meals for both Mercer and Springstead. 5. ADRC/EBS/Manager’s Report- Olson reviewed staff caseloads, staff reporting for month, ADRC outreach events currently and planned for the remainer of 2026. Current Evidence Based programming in both Hurley and Mercer are offering Stepping ON a fall prevention program with successful attendance in both locations. November Memory Screens will be offered at all 5 meal locations, and the Memory Tree will be lit up in December to honor those with memory/dementia related impairments. 6. Volunteer Driver Updates – Olson provided year to state volunteer driver data with 49 volunteer driver trips from January to August. Olson noted current system in place with Bart sending referrals is working appropriately. Lauer asked how many volunteer drivers currently we have. Olson noted three that are reliable and flexible to take on more trips and 4 that desire to provide rides for those in their own community. Which poses hardships when riders are requested. Lauer asked about advertising for Volunteer Driver. Olson noted that a ad in the paper is expected in the next month to promote looking for more volunteer drivers. Olson also noted the issue with insurance provides dropping those who wish to volunteer drivers in the community providing a statewide issue when it comes to volunteer drivers. 7. Discussion of unmet needs and identify outreach needs for 2027: Olson discussed that planning for 2027 Aging plan goals along with outreach efforts in the community begins nearing the end of 2026. Olson asked for any feedback from members about what they’d like to see more programming on, specific things to look into offering etc. Loeffler noted senior mental health and connection to loneliness. Mindless lessons and potential options focused on that to education community on. Olson also noted that more outreach in Mercer is being looked at with the Mercer library with option to offer more office hours in Mercer. Ideas that come to mind should be addressed with Olson to look at for future planning. a. Public Comment- None b. Future Agenda Items: Olson will ask for topic needs closer to next meeting. c. Next Meeting: Next Meeting tentatively scheduled for December 8 th, 1pm Iron County Court House d. Adjourn: Loeffler covered all items on agenda and adjourned the meeting at 1:50 pm. Meeting notes respectfully submitted by Olson T.